[Early intervention and psycho-educational support: a review of the English language literature]

While research on early-intervention programs remains rare in France, there are numerous scientific publications in the English-language literature. This article attempts to describe the contribution of such programs in terms of children subsequent development and changes in their families. Twenty-six programs incorporating home intervention, care, social support and early-childhood education, have been conducted for more than a year within local and hospital populations selected through various scales of risk. The large majority of the programs have randomized trials. Intervention and early education applied essentially to families from deprived environment, families with premature or low-birth-weight infants, and families exhibiting psychosocial or psychiatric risks. Programs of relatively long-term and addressing to families' needs and well-being, initiated in the prenatal period, resulted in variable degrees of positive influences on children cognitive, behavioural and social development, and on parent-child relationships. The most remarkable results with the most prolonged effects concerned school attendance and school performance. Positive effects were also recorded in specific populations (adolescent mothers, mentally retarded mothers.). Nevertheless the efficacy of such programs remained limited and mainly dependent upon parents' motivation and involvement and concurrent family risk factors. Although evaluation of intervention programs regarding multiple risk factors remains difficult, qualitative analyses complementing the available statistical data appear necessary.